Sony KD55XG9505 Screen cracked spontaneously

[AdrianA19761]

Hi,

First of all I would like to say long time Sony TV purchaser here and was happy with their products (Not anymore)

Is anyone aware of any design issues with this model particular the screens cracking with 0 physical damage, I am very careful with my products and do not mishandle them and never have.

This TV I have had for 2 years has been perfect, Been very happy with it until yesterday morning on what can only look like bullet holes in the screen, Nothing has hit the screen, There is no physical damage whatsoever, I came down from upstairs to find cracks behind the LCD rendering the TV with 0 picture it is damaged.

I purchased this from Richer Sounds in the UK who I have already contacted and they said it is not covered under warranty even though there is still 4 years left of the warranty, I am extremely annoyed and want an explanation of the design flaw with this TV and why it has happened, It looks so bad on the images but there are 0 scratches on the screen no physical damage and it has not been hit, Dropped or mishandled in any way shape or form.

Sony I would like an explanation as to why my screen has cracked spontaneously, Thermal issue? Design issue? I can not recommended Richer Sounds or Sony products ever again if this does not get resolved, This TV cost me £1300 2 years ago and has been great since then until yesterday, I know this issue is out down to physical damage but I am not the sort of person to waste people's time if it was physical damage and not to mention I have seen many posts from other users experiencing a similar phenomenon with TVs and also mobile phone screens cracking for whatever reason without explanation.

Do I take Sony or Richer Sounds to a small claims court? I am not about to let lie down a product I paid so much money for, For no error of my own for the screen to just crack so easily on it's own when it was not my fault, I repeat there is 0 exterior physical damage not even a single scratch on the surface of the screen or to the rear of the set.

 

 

[LightFoot]

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@AdrianA19761 wrote:

Sony I would like an explanation as to why my screen has cracked spontaneously, Thermal issue?  

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Hi @AdrianA19761 

I’m am really sorry, and can certainly understand your frustration and annoyance, but unfortunately (just in case you are not aware) this is a community of customers and not Sony Customer Support so you will not get any response from Sony on here.

What have Richer Sounds actually said? Your photos appear to show that the TV has been struck in a particular spot similar to a windscreen stone chip.

It also appears to be wall mounted. Are you using a Sony approved wall mount.

If you haven’t already done so you could try contacting Sony Support direct, for Richer Sounds it is normally a 5 year warranty. You will need your serial number, receipt etc.

https://services.sony.co.uk/supportmvc/en/Contact/Email?cat=televisions-projectors1

Edit: I assume that it will be covered by your home insurance.

[AdrianA19761]

hi,

Thanks for the reply, I was not aware this forum was not monitored by Sony themselves, I did try to contact Sony online but kept getting out round in circles rather than actually being able to contact them so it's then when I contacted the retailer.

Richer sounds asked me to email them the images and they will go from there but I specified to them that the images make it look like physical damage and the TV needed to be seen in person to see that it is pristine front and back, No scratches or marks whatsoever and basically got a phone call back saying it's not covered and it's been mishandled and they cannot replace it under warranty, I was extremely furious with them on the phone call as I told them the same as I am saying here it has been looked after and nothing has struck the screen or has it has mishandled in any way but they are not accepting that.

What is the point of these warranties if they do not believe the user without even having a look at it, It's so annoying, It was actually a 6 yr warranty I got with this set at the time Richer sounds was doing a promotion 5 years from Sony warranty and an extra 1 year from Richer sounds themselves.

I cannot recommend this retailer to anyone anymore sadly, I don't know where to go from here.

Edit, I forgot to add yes it is an approved mount and has been used since with this mount pretty much from day 1 after testing the set for a little while before wall mounting.

[LightFoot · Accepted solution]

Hi @AdrianA19761 

I would “officially” open up a case with Sony Support by using the Email choice in the link I provided.

[AdrianA19761]

Hi,

Thank you for that I shall do that.

I just had another email from Richer Sounds from a different colleague who said it is not covered as the point of impact is very clear, I replied with basically for a retail store to say this without even looking at the set to see there is 0 damage scratches or scuffs to the front or back is baffling and will take the matter to a small claims court if Sony can do nothing.

I am so frustrated as this literally happened by itself but it looks like an impact on the images and that's all Richer sounds are basing there reply on without even seeing it, I told them you need to see it in person that there is no impact whatsoever but they are not interested.

If this is a design flaw with this model which I find out in the end it will be my last Sony product and for sure Richer sounds is on my blacklist for good.

I'm not about to throw away £1300 for a TV that has lasted 2 years through no fault of my own for it to shatter itself for whatever reason is beyond me.

Thanks again I appreciate it 

[SkyNet404]

Yea that sucks, but why are you planning to do now? 

[AdrianA19761]

Yeah definitely, I have never had this happen before or ever seen it for myself, I've had a lot of Sony's over the years and always been very happy with them.

I have decided to go through my insurance as Richer Sounds won't do anything and I can only see Sony saying the same thing so I've bit the bullet and gone through my insurance.

Sadly I will not be purchasing anything from Richer Sounds or Sony ever again, Warranties are not worth the paper they're written on.

It has to have been a build quality issue with that model and at that cost is just not acceptable.

Incidentally before I purchased that set from Richer Sounds I purchased the AG9 55" OLED as I really wanted OLED at the time it cost me £2500 for that set to last 3 days, After the third day I came down in the morning to switch it on and it wouldn't power up, Power light flashing cycling, Some sort of power board failure, That's the reason I returned that for the XG which was the LCD flagship at the time as I wasn't happy to continue with another £2500 AG9 for it to maybe to the same thing after the warranty period, It really has put me off Sony products.

I don't like to name and shame companies but on this occasion I have no choice, They were not interested in even looking at it so I could prove it had not been hit and there was 0 damage to the exterior of the screen or TV anywhere, And it's for that reason they have now lost my future custom, Lesson learned.

[LightFoot]

Hi @AdrianA19761   This is such a rare event, I am surprised that nobody has attempted to investigate it and stop it happening in the future. A couple of questions spring to mind with the limited information provided by the photos.

A. Is it over an active heat source like a heater, fire or radiator. 

B. The wall mount guide says there should be a 4 inch gap along the bottom. 

[AdrianA19761]

It was mounted over an electric effect fire but it's not used and is well away from it anyway but the electric fire is not used, It has been there for 2 years.

I'm not sure what the guide is stating about the 4" gap for the the bottom of the mount, I think from memory the mount can take up to 77" screens I think it was, I'd have to dig the info out but yes I agree I have never seen this before myself, I have heard of a few incidents online from others and the ones I could find incidentally seems to be on Sony screens.

The insurance have basically wrote it off on the fact it's not worth even contemplating a repair as it is the screen, I am extremely disappointed in Richer Sounds, All they kept saying was something must have struck it basically in not so many words trying to call me a liar which is annoying to say the least, Why the hell would I do that with a TV I was completely happy with still in 4 years of warranty left is just mind boggling to me, I did get a call from them saying they would do an inspection but said that's all it would be from the exterior they would not open it up to see why it shattered internally and said it was chargeable for just a visual inspection to which I replied I am not paying anything for a 2 year old TV that is under warranty that has no exterior damage whatsoever for them not to want to open it up to prove to me why this happened internally without exterior force, They know exactly where I am coming from, Trying to accuse me of handling the TV incorrectly by not holding the from the edges and basically saying we must have lifted it with hands on the screen itself to which I told them over the phone are you being serious, I'm not that stupid and even if we did put our fingers on the screen should it have done that amount of damage just by lifting it if so that's rubbish and fragile by just touching the screen then it's a design flaw to which he had no response, We are allowed to clean our screens from time to time with care obviously which I am very careful where things like that are concerned, I just said if that was the case and I would have to have had literally forced my thumb on the screen for it to do that in 2 places, Just unreal to be honest mate, Such a bad experience.

Initially I told them I would take it to a small claims court but he said I would need an engineers report for that to happen and it could become costly so I just give up and decided my insurance was the only route without paying anything out for something that was not my or anybody's fault whatsoever.

It literally looks like it's been shot in 2 places which has spidered out so I cleaned the screen just to confirm my own suspicions and nothing not a single mark anywhere on the exterior of the screen or the frame or the back or anywhere, Something internally is going on either with internal design of this set maybe being to close to components or something on this screen was already weak whether in it's frame or during manufacture, I can't prove it and neither can they so I just give up, My worst experience with and electrical product for sure.

[spannerzone]

@AdrianA19761   Very annoying, I can really understand that but, has once having sold electrical items to the public I can also understand Richer Sounds on this.... please hear me out... self destructing  LCD panels is not a very regular occurance, I'm sure it does happen as in this case and a few others (link) however, customer damaging LCDs screens happens day after day (thanks to Wii and Occulus virtual reality in many cases) - so Richer Sounds are just taking the most obvious route, it looks like customer has impacted the screen, end of story, right or wrong, they take the easiest option. They cover their warranty costs themselves (no actually insurance backing) so they can't recoup the loss..

In my opinion, the course of action would be either get an independent report from a TV engineer to (hopefully) prove this was not impact but a design flaw, take Richers Sounds to small claims court and you'd likely win.

Alternative, kick up a fuss on social media, I hate this approach but it works the best when no other option, on Twitter, Facebook etc post pictures and make sure RIcher Sounds and Sony are tagged...they hate bad publicity and most likely to help. (worked when my boiler kept failing and a negative review got immediate reaction!)

I would NOT go directly to Sony as that takes any liability away from RS - you should always complain against the seller, your legal rights and contract are with them, not Sony....but going direct to Sony, you absolve RS liabilities. Read up on your consumer rights, the UK has decent consumer protection but if you don't use them (eg via your retailer) then you can lose many rights.